Large Marina residential project gets planning go-ahead.

THE West Los Angeles Area Planning Commission has approved a 298-unit apartment complex adjacent to Marina del Rey, paving the way for a possible groundbreaking next year.

Trammell Crow Residential, which recently completed and sold a 102-unit project nearby, is planning to build the $80 million project, dubbed the Alexan Marina, on about six acres of industrial property just southwest of Washington and Lincoln boulevards.

Trammell Crow is under contract to buy the site, on Princeton Drive between Thatcher and Carter avenues, for an undisclosed price.

"It's the most regulated project I've ever worked on in my career," said Michael Genthe, managing director at Costa Mesa-based Trammell Crow Residential, noting that the project had to comply with the city's coastal development plan as well as specific plans for both the Venice and the Oxford Triangle neighborhood. "From day one, our approach was to ask for no variances, which is what we did."

Barring an appeal to the decision, which would require City Council consideration, the project could begin next year and be complete by mid-2006. The site, which will include a cut-through to Lincoln Boulevard one block east, will total 375,000 square feet and range between two and four stories.

The developer is building into a Marina del Rey apartment market where fourth quarter rents averaged more than $2,000 a month, versus $1,346 countywide, according to Novato-based RealFacts.

Last month, Trammell Crow Residential (no relation to developer Trammell Crow Co.) sold its Alexan Fontaine complex on Glencoe Avenue to MetLife Inc. subsidiary SSR Realty Advisors Inc. for $28 million.

"The average household income in the area is over $100,000 a year while 64 percent of the population is renters," said Genthe. "So it's a very job-rich, renter-rich marketplace."

Paragon Purchase Castlerock Investments LLC has bought Paragon Business Center in Valencia for $21 million, its third Santa Clarita Valley investment since early 2003.

Castlerock paid about $127 a foot for the five-building complex at Avenue Stanford and Avenue Scott. The complex is about 90 percent occupied and counts radio network Westwood One among its tenants.

"It's a fantastic location," said Randy Kirshner, principal at L.A.-based Castlerock, noting that the buildings' layouts are suitable for small tenants. "There's a huge demand for that type of space."

The seller was Holualoa Cos., which bought downtown Los Angeles' Pacific Center for $36 million last year.

Last year, Castlerock bought the 67,000-square-foot Valley Business Center and the 7-acre parcel next to it for more than $7 million.

Velocity Investment Sales' Nick Brighton represented Holualoa. Castlerock was represented internally.

Corridor Closing

One of the two Westwood apartment sites earmarked by Houston-based Belmont Corp. for an assisted living complex last year has been bought by a local investor.

C and Z Partners LLC paid $4.5 million, or about $281,000 a unit, for the 16-unit apartment complex at 10777 Wilshire Blvd. and may redevelop the 18,000-square-foot site, according to Clark Everitt, an associate at Investment Real Estate Associates, who represented the buyer.

C and Z has built or redeveloped about 80 apartment and condominium units in the Westwood area over the past 30 years, including the 12-unit condominium complex at 1950 Beverly Glen Blvd., according to principal Peter Katzman, who is also principal of L.A.-based architect Katzman Associates Architecture.

Though the developer has yet to decide on plans for the building, Katzman said that there would be no attempt to build above the Wilshire-Westwood Scenic Corridor Specific Plan 75-foot height limit.

"I'm not young enough to go beyond that," said Katzman.

Belmont had a contract last year to buy the 50-year-old building and the adjacent property at 10763 Wilshire Blvd. It planned to scrape the buildings to make way for an 11-story facility. The developer ran into community opposition to its request for an exemption to build above the Wilshire Corridor's 75-foot height limit, and Belmont backed out of both deals.

The seller, DFK Corp., was represented internally. The property at 10763 Wilshire is not now on the market.

Fully Insured

Employers Direct Insurance Co. has signed a lease for 32,000 square feet at Agoura Hills Centre and is moving from its Westlake Village facility.

Employers Direct signed a five-year deal worth $4.2 million and will take occupancy at 20301 Agoura Road in August. With the insurance company signed, the 67,000-square-foot building is fully leased.

"The market's been fairly slow, so we're thankful to have this lease," said Jerry Katell, president of Katell Properties LLC, the landlord. "The good news is that there wasn't a whole lot built out here during this last cycle."

Mazirow Commercial Inc.'s Sheryl Mazirow represented the tenant while Daum Commercial Real Estate's Keith Green, David Corsello and Mike Foxworthy represented Katell.

Low Priced High-Rise

Lambert Smith Hampton has purchased the tallest building in Pomona, buying the 130,000-square-foot Pacific Home Towers for $7.5 million. The buyer paid about $58 a foot for the nine-story building, which is about 45 percent empty, and may convert all or part of it to residential.

"The city has been very pro-housing and they have asked us to consider a conversion," said Shane Astani, partner at Beverly Hills-based Lambert Smith Hampton. "We're 50-50 on it."

Lambert Smith Hampton is an affiliate of Astani Enterprises, which recently sold a 270-unit apartment complex in Valencia and is building a 235-unit complex just west of downtown Los Angeles.

Ashwill Associates' Brad Bolduc and Anthony Naticchioni represented both the buyer and seller, Pacific Home Towers LLC.

Staff reporter Danny King can be reached at [phone] ext. 230, or at [e-mail].